Aaaah… sleep! Such a popular and much talked about topic. Lack of sleep can be harmful to any individual’s health and well-being, while adequate sleep assists in the retention of stamina and provision of energy that fuels you to function all day long. With an increase in everyday stress levels, hypertension, and the overall pace of life, individuals are resorting to all sorts of things to help improve sleep.
If you’ve been introduced to essential oils already, you might now like to try using their therapeutic properties to improve your sleeping. Below you’ll find my signature collection of essential oil blends for sleep. I’ve tried and tested each and every blend in this set, and love them all for different reasons.
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Contents
Essential Oils for Sleep
Many essential oils help us to relax our mind and body. My go-to oils for sleep include: Lavender, Vetiver, Cedarwood, Clary Sage, Patchouli, Chamomile, Sweet Marjoram, Ylang-Ylang, Valerian, and Sandalwood essential oils.
- Lavender: Most well-known essential oil. Generally soothes and relaxes our bodily systems.
- Vetiver: An aromatherapy base note; emotionally very grounding. Strong aroma so works best using just a drop in your blend.
- Cedarwood: A woodsy, yet sweet scent that is mildly sedative. Works well for cases of insomnia and to help calm that 2am racing mind.
- Clary sage: This oil acts as a hormone-balancer. It can also help reduce levels of cortisol in our system, a hormone often associated with stress.
- Patchouli: Some people love it, some people hate it. It’s a musky, grounding, very centering essential oil. Use it for stress-related sleep interruptions or in combination with emotional trauma.
- Chamomile: After Lavender, this is likely the most-used oil for sleep. It’s soothing, gentle, and light in aroma. Chamomile as an ancient home remedy helps to relieve stress and anxiety, the leading causes for depression. In small dilutions, both Roman and German chamomile are also safe for babies as young as 6 months.
- Sweet Marjoram: A more herbal note, slightly spicy and sharp, Marjoram oil helps your brain to relax. Use it it for insomnia-related sleep problems, or if you have trouble unwinding before bed.
- Ylang-Ylang: This is a sweet, flowery scent that’s calming and soothing to our body. Use it for relaxation, or to promote feelings of happiness and contentment before turning off the lights. It is also a lightly aphrodisiac essential oil.
- Valerian: Valerian is used in ancient medicines for its calming, emotionally balancing and grounding properties. Use it to help remove nervous tension, and to let go of negative thoughts and self-talk. You can also manage panic attacks with Valerian essential oil.
- Sandalwood: A luxurious and sensual oil, Sandalwood has a wooden yet sweet and pleasant aroma. Research has shown that Sandalwood may have a sedative effect by reducing wakefulness.
How To Use Essential Oils For Sleep
The Mofado Diffuser in Faux Dark Wood.
Most commonly, essential oils are used in an essential diffuser together with water. Aromatherapy works quite well over our olfactory system (=sense of smell) as many emotions can be triggered by scents alone.
While there are other ways to use essential oils, diffuser blending is a fun art and hobby on its own that many essential oil enthusiasts enjoy.
To get started, you’ll need:
- An essential oil diffuser. You can find the top rated models that sell for under $40 here. The diffuser blends on this page are for a diffuser with a 150-200 mL sized water tank. If you own a smaller, adjust the drops of oils used accordingly. If you own a larger unit, fill it only partially with water; or double the recipe.
- Essential oils. If you already own a set of essential oils that work with my recipes below, great! If you’re shopping for oils, have a look at the top 10 highest ranked essential oil brands, and select a company you like to buy your oils from.
10 Best Diffuser Blends for Sleep
Essential oil diffuser blends work in diffusers of any size, you will just have to adjust how many drops of oil you put into your water tank if you have a larger diffuser with a bigger reservoir. The diffuser blends I mix are made for 150-200 ml sized diffusers.
Most diffusers come with a water cup that lets you accurately fill the desired amount of water into your unit.
Dreamcatcher
- 3 Cedarwood
- 3 Clary Sage
Take A Nap
- 4 Neroli
- 2 Marjoram
- 2 Patchouli
See You In Dreamland
- 2 Cedarwood
- 2 Ravensara
- 2 Lavender
Earthy Lullaby
- 3 Cedarwood
- 1 Vetiver
- 3 Sandalwood
Sleeping Beauty
- 4 Bergamot
- 2 Marjoram
- 2 Lavender
Delightful Sleep
- 2 Lavender
- 2 Marjoram
- 2 Sweet Orange
- 2 Roman Chamomile
Sandman’s Soothe
- 3 Clary Sage
- 3 Lavender
- 1 Vetiver
Mama’s Calm
- 4 Roman Chamomile
- 2 Clary Sage
- 2 Bergamot
Bedtime Breeze
- 3 Frankincense
- 2 Lavender
- 2 Marjoram
- 1 Vetiver
Sweet Slumber
- 1 Patchouli
- 4 Frankincense
- 3 Sweet Orange
The above night time essential oil diffuser blends are for a 150-200 ml size diffuser.
SleepAid Essential Oil Blend
Now, this post wouldn’t be complete if I didn’t give you the easiest option for better sleep. Plant Therapy makes an amazing sleep blend, named SleepAid™. It contains the 100% pure, undiluted essential oils of Lavender, Mandarin, Ylang Ylang, Valerian, and Neroli.
Get It Here
If you want another really easy way to get started, build your own set of 6 essential oils at Edens Garden, and you’ll be able to make all of my recipes when your kit comes in the mail!
If you’re just needing to add an oil or two to your collection to be able to make these diffuser recipes for sleep, here are a few of my favorites that you can easily add to your next order from Amazon:
Final Thoughts
I hope you have added an essential oil diffuser to your bedroom and are experimenting with diffuser blends for better sleep. While it may not be a solution that works as quickly as a sleeping pill, it is definitely a more natural alternative that can holistically improve your overall well-being, and not just knock you out for a night of ZZZs.
Do you have favorite diffuser blends for sleep? Which oils work for you, and which don’t? Let us know in the comments below!
References
Deb
I am new to oils and my husband didn’t believe until I put “Mama’s Calm” into the diffuser last night and he was knocked out!
Emma Carter
Hi Deb, YES!! That is AMAZING, thanks so much for letting us know! ?
Christine Wilson
I have had insomnia for a long time, too. I would also like to know the strongest recipe to help me sleep. Melatonin does not help me. Thank you.
Nannette
I have had insomnia for a long time and recently started taking liquid Melatonin, which seems to work for me, however it tends to leave me sleepy/groggy during some of the day. Is there one of the 10 recipes that might be a little more potent for my circumstance? I have been using ess. oils for 3-4 years. Thank you in advance.
Nannette